


Richie, Won't you come Play with Me?

by Chibi_Twan



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Dreams and Nightmares, Everyone Needs A Hug, Families of Choice, Fix-It of Sorts, Found Family, Gen, Hallucinations, Homophobic Language, Internalized Homophobia, Memory Loss, Not Canon Compliant, Out of Character Pennywise (IT), Panic Attacks, Possessive Pennywise (IT), Protective Richie Tozier, Richie Tozier is a Little Shit, Richie Tozier is a Mess, Self-Esteem Issues, Slurs, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, gut feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:21:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26472541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chibi_Twan/pseuds/Chibi_Twan
Summary: The IT Modern-reincarnation AU where everyone remembers except Richie.
Relationships: The Losers Club & Richie Tozier
Comments: 5
Kudos: 29





	1. Chapter 1

The moving process barely took them a week after paying some expensive company for moving trailers and getting jam-packed into the family car. They didn't have a lot of stuff, the majority of Richie’s stuff he outgrew and donated to the local charity before leaving.

Life in Derry was different from what he was used to in California. It was boring, everything seemed… dull. The grown-ups he's seen behaved as though they were mere zombies going about their days, though from how his dad acted after having to deal with difficult patients who wanted numbing just for x-ray checkup of their teeth, he assumed all adults felt that way after working. So yeah, Derry was weird and a bit old fashioned but it wasn't anything he couldn't get used to.

At least, that's what he thought.

Then weird fog started appearing throughout the town, despite what the weather reports say, and kids started going missing. Richie was more than willing to listen to his parents’ safety rules, even agreeing to come home before the eight o'clock curfew the mayor set…. For the first two weeks. Then he started feeling a bit stir crazy. This is why he felt justified in waiting until both his parents were out late at work and his sister asleep in her bed before sneaking down the tree just outside of his bedroom window. What with everything going on throughout the town, he didn't get the chance to go exploring since they moved here. Although he could recall one of the cashiers at the local market mentioning something called the Barrens. If he remembered correctly then it should be somewhere near the local landfill.

It wasn’t until he was biking down the street, about to turn onto Witcham that Richie took note of how his body was trembling. 

It wasn’t too bad, he was still able to keep the bike steady but nothing he did stopped the fierce tremors in his arms and legs. Richie planned on slowing down to a stop, only the moment his momentum began to taper off, something in his chest- _squeezed_.

Wheezing, his upper body leaning halfway over the handlebars, Richie found his legs moving of their own accord. Peddling fast and faster until he was speeding down the street, his hood flying back as he struggled to keep his bike from toppling over as it struggles to keep the wheels pointed straight. Richie looked up, squinting through the fog at a yellow blur up ahead, standing beneath a broken traffic light. He couldn’t tell what it was, but seeing that small figure in that yellow raincoat, with those oddly bright red galoshes, Richie felt a sliver of fear begin to wind itself around his heart and stretching out throughout his entire body as he watched the figure chase after something. The muscles in his calves burned as he forced them to go faster, to push his old bike past the normally careful limits he carried. Just as Richie reached ten feet from what he realized had to be a kid, beginning to crouch down by a drain over on Witcham and Jackson. A sense of foreboding filled him, sending a feeling of ice down into his ribs. Richie couldn’t see that well, condensation forming on his glasses and robbing him of what little sight he had to begin with. Even with his limited vision, Richie noticed how the kid recoiled from the drain he had been reaching his hand down, before slowing moving toward it once more.

He moved without thinking.

Continuously building up speed as he flew down the street, heading right for the kid.

It was as a sad voice, cold and somewhat mocking yet managing to sound sincere came echoing out from the drain, asking the kid “Is this your boat?” That Richie made his move.

Richie swung his arm out to the side as he leaned down a bit, his arm connected to the kids’ side, sending them both to the ground a couple of feet away from the drain. Richie felt slightly sick as the kid cried out in pain, he tried his best to kick his bike away from them as he lost control, even twisting to the side to avoid landing on top of the kid. He knew he should apologize, apologize, and take the time to sit the kid up, check him over for any injuries.

Only he couldn’t.

Instead of offering the kid a hand, instead of sitting there and quietly asking the kid how he was doing, Richie stood up unsteadily and lifted the kid by grasping under his arms. The kid whimpered but didn’t protest or say anything as Richie hurriedly led him over to his bike. Richie stood his bike up, manhandling the kid into sitting on the seat as Richie stood in front, already peddling away from that damn drain. He kept peddling until the overbearing feeling of dread faded. That oddly familiar, haunting voice vanishing with it.

It wasn’t until the sounds of the rainfall, of insects, birds chirping, of someone’s dog barking to be let in, and the small sniffling coming from behind him that Richie realized what was truly wrong with the situation. Besides that fucking creepy voice, besides the near panic that consumed him, besides technically kidnapping some little kid- Besides all of that, It wasn’t until just then that he noticed his hearing had been gone up until now.

He hadn’t been able to hear anything other than the sound of his heart beating and that voice coming from the drain.

Richie slowed to a stop, twisting around just as the kid’s head jerked up to stare at him, terrified. Something about the kid stood out to him but Richie couldn’t figure out what it was. The longer the two of them went without speaking, the more violent the kid’s shaking became as his breathing turned to quick, little gasps and one arm clutching the other to his chest. Richie scrambled for something, anything to say.

“I’m sorry!” Richie blurts out, “I-I didn’t mean to hit you and I-er, I was going pretty fast. My first reaction was to take you to the hospital but I-I’m… I’m new here. To Derry. I don’t know where I am, or where I’m going? Sorry.”

The kid blinked at him, slowly calming down as Richie rambled, going on to explain how he had moved here with his parents and his little sister from California. How he didn’t expect to see anyone out this late, which is why he was going so fast, how he could still bike them to the hospital but he would need directions. Richie stopped talking as the kid giggled. His small frame shaking slightly as one hand reached out to grasp at the end of Richie’s jacket.

“I-It’s okay, I don’t need a hospital.” The kid smiled, “It doesn’t even hurt that much! But can you- can you take me home? Please? I-I don’t want to go back alone…”

Richie shuddered, the voice replaying in his mind, “Yeah. Yeah, I can do that. Where do you live?”

“J-Just past Witcham and Jackson, I can show you the house.”

Richie did not want to go anywhere near that street, ever again if he was being honest. The thought of riding his bike past that drain terrified him more than anything he’s ever heard or seen in his life. Still, he told the kid to hold on tight to him as he began peddling back the way they came. He didn’t want to go down that route but he had to get the kid back home.

They weren’t riding for long, a minute or two at most before Richie found himself slamming on the breaks as another kid, only around his age, came around the corner on his bike and almost crashing into them but swerving at the last second.

Richie looked over at the new person, intent on cursing at him at least a little bit for not watching where he was going but the moment they locked eyes the new kid gasped at him. Loud enough that for a split second Richie thought he was about to start choking or something from lack of air. Then the moment ended and the kid’s eyes moved past Richie to latch onto the kid behind him.

“G-Georgie?”

“Bill!”

The air left his lungs so quickly that briefly, Richie struggled to breathe back in. The way that new kid, Bill, called out Georgie’s name… it was as though he were seeing a ghost, communicating with someone he didn’t think he’d ever see again. Richie shook his head, those thoughts were odd and not normal for him but he didn’t focus on that. Instead, he leaned forward, moving out of the way as Georgie fumbled getting off the bike to rush into Bill’s waiting arms. Richie stood there, feeling awkward and as though he were intruding on a private moment. Just as he scooted back to sit on his bike’s seat, Bill’s head whipped up to stare at Richie with a look in his eyes that Richie couldn’t identify. A look he was somewhat scared to put a name to.

“What?” Richie demanded, his voice coming off harsher than he meant it to be, but the way Bill was staring at him was unnerving.

“W-W-What are you-you doing here?” Bill stuttered, “Are y-you okay?”

Richie blinked, “What?”

Georgie spoke up, his arm’ tightening around Bill’s waist as he shifted to look over at Richie, “He was giving me a ride home,” Georgie sniffed in, eyes watering as he stared up at Bill, “B-Bill, there’s a-a clown! I-In the drain, I dropped, I dropped your boat! I was gonna grab it and the clown was g-going to hand it to me.”

Richie cleared his throat, loudly, only to then start coughing because he did not think trying to clear his throat like that would hurt the way it did.

“A-Are you okay?” Georgie asked, worried, “Are you getting sick from the rain? Wait, Bill! Bill, you’re still sick! You’re supposed to be resting!”

“I ha-had to come to get you!” Bill argued, “I-I said n-n-not to go out!”

“I’m sorry! I didn’t want to bother you… I know I can be loud a-and you said you needed to rest.”

Bill looked about ready to argue but stopped himself, taking a deep breath in as he glanced around at their surroundings, “...L-Let’s just… head home, okay?”

“Okay.”

Richie waved goodbye to Georgie, about to ride back to his own house instead of the Barrens but was stoped by Bill grabbing his wrist.

“W-What are you d-doing?”

“What?”

Bill frowned at him, looking oddly determined as he started pulling on Richie’s bike, trying to turn the wheels in the other direction, “Y-You’re coming home w-with us. I-It’s past curfew. We’re not s-staying out here with that stupid c-clown.”

“You believe me?” Georgie asked quietly.

“Y-Yeah, now come on.”

Richie stayed silent as Georgie climbed onto the back on Bill’s bike, he wasn’t sure why they wanted him to go with them. If it was already past curfew then he needed to hurry and get home before his sister noticed he was gone. It didn’t matter if he beat their parents home, she would just rat him out. Richie followed them up until they came to a stop outside of some two-story house, it looked fairly large and well taken care of. He didn’t follow as Bill rode his bike up the driveway to a garage, both boys climbed off the bike and Bill lifted the garage door to put his bike away. When Bill noticed Richie still at the end of his driveway, he frowned.

“Er, sorry but I need to get going.” Richie explained awkwardly, hand coming up to rub at the back of his neck, “Need to get home before my parents.”

“W-What? No!” Bill lowered his voice, “What about the t-the clown?”

“A clown. Right,” Richie lowered his voice as well, eyeing Georgie as he raced inside to the house from the garage door, “Uh, I’m going to assume he’s your brother? Well, he can’t hear us anymore so you can stop pretending that there’s a clown.”

“Huh?”

“Listen, your brother was playing by some drain, I think he dropped something down there. He mentioned that he did, remember? Thing is, I was there when he was walking down the street. I didn’t see anyone else, it was just us.”

“W-Why was he holding h-his arm?”

Richie flinched, guiltily muttering, “That’s… my fault. I-I sort of ran into him with my bike trying to get him away from the drain.”

Bill nodded slowly, “Why? W-Why were you t-trying to get h-him away from the d-drain?”

“I… I don’t know…” Richie huffed, “Look man, I’m sorry alright? I already apologized to Georgie too. I really need to get going.”

Bill tried calling out to him but Richie ignored it, just like he ignored the feeling of eyes in the sewer drains watching him as he peddled home.


	2. Library Meetings

Richie raced home, silently thanking whatever god was listening that he remembered not to shut his window fully. Sure, that wasn't exactly safe but it did leave him the best way of getting inside without having to sit outside, waiting for his parents to get home, or waking up his sister. The hairs stood up on the back of his neck, and Richie shuddered. Unable to fully shake off the feeling of being watched. Turning, Richie slammed his window shut, locking it and closing his curtains before bolting toward his bed.

He was wet, a bit dirty and his forearm stung from where it scraped against the cement earlier, but Richie ignored all of that as he curled up in bed.

Georgie said there was a clown in the sewer drain… and Bill immediately believed him. Was that just a normal thing in Derry? People with creepy voices hiding in drains and tempting kids? Richie's breathing hitched, did… did what just happened have anything to do with those kids going missing? Would Georgie have gone missing if he wasn't there? Would both of them have gone missing if Richie didn't make them leave the area?

"Shit…" Richie muttered, he didn't wait to see if Bill went inside. 

He couldn't have been kidnapped from his own front lawn… could he? Should he call someone? But… who would he call? His parents didn't seem to know anyone in Derry yet and his sister only played with a few young kids when getting sighed up for school here. Should he call the police and tell them he wasn't sure if Bill made it inside safely? He didn't get a look at the address, and he doesn't know their last name either. Richie spent the next few hours, twisting and turning over in his bed. Debating on whether or not he should try refinding Bill and Georgie's house in the morning and check in on them. He figured that if he took the same route then he should come across it sooner or later… he just didn't want to ride by that drain… or that street in general. He resolved himself to getting his dad to drive past Bill and Georgie's house tomorrow when it was time for him to go to the library. Feeling mostly satisfied with his decision Richie turned over and closed his eyes. Sleep was hard enough to come by on a normal day for him, but for tonight it seemed nearly impossible he couldn't get that voice from the drain out of his head, in fact, it seemed to be getting louder. The words twisting around until they formed a new sentence entirely.

Just as he was on the verge of unconsciousness, the voice whispered in his ear.

_Let's play a game, Richie._

* * *

Derry is a town trapped in the past, one forever stuck in the late 1900s. He knew from their first night here that Derry was old fashioned but this was overkill. Nothing could convince Richie otherwise. No matter how long he stayed outside, no matter how many people he stared at, none of them were carrying around a cellphone, absorbed more in staring at the screen than society around them. It was weird, Richie couldn't understand how all these people could go about their days without at least taking their phone out once to check it. Instead, people seemed to be actively interacting with one another.

Part of him liked it, and the other part hated it.

The public library was a tall and dark building looming in the distance, a lot of people stopped and stared at them as they drove down the street in their 2012 SUV. At first Richie assumed it was due to their car being such a ugly shade of green but he had a feeling that it was because their car was the only one that looked out of place. It took a offhand comment from his dad that Richie noticed all the cars around town were models from the 80s and 90s. They stood out like a sore thumb. Richie mumbled a quick goodbye to his dad before turning and all but running into the library. Anything to get away from the vacant stares everyone was giving them. It wasn't until he was inside and saw the outdated computers that Richie realized he wouldn't be able to play any of his desktop games. He couldn't go back outside and ask his dad to take him home either, today was his first day of work and his mom was checking out the schools with his sister. 

Groaning, Richie dragged his feet over to the nearest bookshelves, and snatched a couple books that had vaguely interesting covers.

He carried his pile of books over to the lone table off to the side, there was only one other kid sitting there but Richie didn't think the kid would mind if he sat with him. The kid had his head buried in some sort of old looking book with no cover or title on the front that he could see. Richie tried to set his books down gently but the top two slid off and slammed onto the table. The kid just about jumped out of his seat in fright and Richie quickly sat down the rest of his books before holding his hands out in front of him in a non-threatening manner.

"Hey, hey! It's okay, sorry I didn't mean to drop them."

The kid didn't say a word, in fact it didn't even look like he was breathing. He just kept staring at Richie with wide eyes and his mouth dropped open. A few minutes passed in tense silence, Richie shifted on the spot wanting to sit down but also waiting to see if the kid would ask him to leave.

"You know, usually people introduce themselves instead of just staring at someone the moment they enter the same room." Richie drawled, "Come on man, you've been giving me a look since I got here. What? Did I scare you that badly or something? This table only for you? I can lea-"

"No!" The kid shifted in his seat, looking down, "No, I just- I wanted t-to say hi, but I-I wasn't…"

Richie's glare vanished immediately, "Hey… it's okay, I don't bite or anything. What's your name?"

He didn't expect the kid to suddenly adopt a crestfallen look and stare at him with watery eyes.

"I-I'm Ben," Ben sniffed, "...I got bored waiting for my friends to sneak out of their houses so I came here to wait…"

Richie nodded, "Okay, well, Ben. Would you mind if I stayed and waited here with you? I'm waiting on a ride, and your table was the only one open."

Richene chose not to mention that his ride wouldn't be here for at least another four hours. His dad promised that he would come get him during his lunch break.

"Y-Yeah!" Ben beamed, "If your ride isn't here before my friends, would you like to come hang out with us?"

"Hang out where?"

"We were going to head to the Quarry."

"Why?" Richie frowned, "Doesn't Derry have a sign up not to go there?"

Ben faltered, "Well, yeah but it's still a new sign and it's not enforced or anything. I don't know why they put that up anyway."

"Maybe because of the missing children," Richie hummed, "After all, the bodies could be hidden in the water."

Ben reeled back, and Richie realized that he had crossed a line. Joke or not, that was insensitive.

"Shit. Shit, I'm sorry!"

Ben shook his head, hastily gesturing for Richie to lower his voice as the librarian looked over at them, "It's okay! Well, not okay-okay because, you know, talking about dead kids like that isn't really okay, but I just mean- I get what you're saying? S-So it's okay?"

Richie snorted, "How about we pretend I didn't say shit about dead kids and we just talk about something else?"

"I am totally okay with that."

"Hmm, you know you're pretty alright Haystack."

"... Haystack?"

Richie was about to apologize, he was about to explain how giving people nicknames on the spot was an old habit of his, but then he noticed how… overjoyed Ben looked. 

So instead of apologizing for the nickname, Richie chuckled and said, "Yep, sorry to have to be the one to tell you this my dear Benjamin but I only give my friend's nicknames. Looks like you're stuck with me now."

Ben grinned, "No complaint here."

"My name's Richie, Richie Tozier." Richie gestured at the forgotten book in Ben's hands, "Whatcha reading?"

"Oh, it's a history book."

"History." Richie repeated slowly, "...it's Summer though? Please tell me it's not Summer homework. Because you look like you are around my age and I'm not fully signed up for school just yet."

"Nono, I'm just reading this for fun!"

Richie couldn't help the grin spreading across his face, Ben's laughter was contagious, and suddenly Richie was glad that he was stuck at the library until further notice. They sat there for quite a while, their books left off to the side and forgotten as they chatted with one another. Richie learned that Ben was waiting for five friends of his, friends he's known all his life. He also learned that they call themselves the loser's club. Despite the fact that loser was usually a term people used as an insult, hearing that it was the name Ben and his group of friends called each other filled him with warmth. Richie was content to sit back and let Ben lead the discussion, when he found out Richie just moved to Derry a few weeks ago he was determined to tell Richie everything he knew about the town. Which included the town's history, even touching on the topic of these recent disappearances having happened before. Richie changed the topic by asking Ben more about his friends.

Midway through a sentence Ben cut himself off and grinned over Richie's shoulder.

Richie turned in his seat, watching as a girl with fiery red hair and a broad grin made a beeline in their direction. The moment her eyes met his, however, she faltered in her steps.

Frowning, Richie quickly turned back towards Ben, "She's your friend right? Do you need me to leave? I'm not interrupting some sort of date between you two, am I?"

Ben blushed, "What? No-no, we aren't dating and I told you that I have five friends meeting me here, it's not just her coming."

"She doesn't look too pleased to see me here."

Ben glanced back at the girl before meeting Richie's gaze, "I promise you that she has nothing against you being here, she probably… she probably thinks that I'm tutoring you, or something, and doesn't want to interrupt us."

Richie hummed, staying quiet as Ben got up and rounded their table to meet the girl halfway. They talked quietly with each other for a few moments, the girl kept gesturing back to Richie and sneaking not so subtle glances at him, before making their way over towards him.

"Richie, this is my friend Beverly."

"Beverly," Richie stood up, reaching his hand out to shake her hand, and running his tongue over his teeth, "Mind if I call ya Bev?"

Bev smiled at him, "Go right ahead, it's the only thing I'll answer to anyway."

Richie smiled back, silently relieved that she didn't seem to hate him on sight. Maybe making friends here wouldn't be as hard as he told his parents it would be.

"The others are actually waiting for us at the Quarry," Bev told Ben, "They sent me to come get you that way it would be quicker."

"How would that be quicker?" Richie asked before realizing he just cut into their conversation, "Shit. Sorry, that's actually none of my business."

Bev laughed, "it's fine! The thing is if we all came here to pick up Ben then we would have stood around for a while and just bullshiting, and by the time we got to the Quarry it would have been time to leave."

"You too should get going then before it gets any later," Richie grabbed Ben's book off the table and handed it to him, "It was nice meeting the two of you, maybe before summer ends I can see you again?"

Richie winced, that sounded a lot less corny in his head.

"Oh… you aren't coming with us?"

"What?"

Ben looked down, "Uh, I said if your ride wasn't here before my friends got here then you could come with us… if you want to?"

"Oh!" Richie floundered, unsure of what to say, "I… Yeah, I can come."

"Really?" Ben lit up turning toward Bev who began to smile just as widely, "Awesome! D-Do you need to call someone? Your ride? Let them know you're going to the Quarry?"

Richie shook his head, "It's alright, they won't even notice I'm gone."


	3. Chapter 3

Richie was walking through town, for once leaving his bike back home. The steering has been a bit off ever since crashing into Georgie. He doesn't want to risk riding it in the street when he can't control the turns, which was why he had dad drop him off at the library. He noticed Ben and Bev had bikes, but they chose to walk alongside them as they headed toward the Quarry. Ben and Bev. He likes them a lot more than he should be, considering he just met them. Only he couldn't help but grin at the thought of getting to hang out with them, possibly making plans to hang out throughout summer as well.

It may have been just the beginning of Summer, but it was hot enough that only a couple minutes into walking towards the Quarry had Richie quickly pulling off his jacket and rolling up his sleeves. It was almost always hot in California, but he still wasn't too good with the heat. He was comforted that Ben and Bev both looked like they couldn't stand how hot it was either. He was just glad that Bev finally stopped staring at him and focused on her conversation with Ben. It was just as they were nearing some sort of bridge that something came flying at them. His glasses were starting to fog up so he couldn't see it clearly, but he could make out a greyish blur heading straight toward Bev.

"Look out!"

Bev yelped as Richie grabbed her, pulling her out of the way as whatever came flying at them hit the ground.

"What the hell?" Bev breathed, "Who the fuck is throwing rocks at us?"

Richie quickly took his glasses off, using his shirt to try cleaning them, but he was forced to stop as Bev began pulling her after him.

"Oh god, it's Bowers!" 

Ben cried out suddenly, and Richie felt himself freeze up in response. He jammed his glasses back on before searching around him for Ben. Bev was still by his side, but Richie noticed Ben standing a little way back, leaning over and holding onto his head. A group of older looking kids ran toward them; now that his glasses were a bit cleaner, Richie immediately noticed the large rocks they were carrying.

"Ben! Ben, we need to go!"

Richie stumbled as Bev pushed him back, quickly muttering that he should get a head start before she rushed over to Ben. He wasn't entirely sure why, but knowing that Bev didn't want him to stay and help… hurt. For some reason, it wasn't until one of the idiots that were throwing rocks at them had grabbed onto Bev while the rest of them pinned Ben down that Richie finally moved.

One of them pulled Ben's sweatshirt up, exposing his stomach, and another one of them slapped it. Richie can see all of their mouths moving, the way their shoulders bounced up and down, and how Ben struggled to getaway. Bev was fighting the guy pinning her down tooth and nail; he could only focus on Ben. One of the ones by Ben started pulling something out of his pocket, but Richie had long since stopped paying attention to the others. Instead, all he could see was the glint of a knife that one of them flicked open and held out toward Ben.

Richie's stomach dropped.

He needed to step in, he had to step in.

Ben was going to get hurt, and Richie didn't want to stop to think why the guy holding onto Bev seemed to enjoy pinning her down so much, or why everyone was ignoring the fact that he was there. Ben needed his help first, then Bev.

Richie's legs carried him forward without him realizing he had begun to move. He didn't hesitate, using every bit of his gangly limbs to his advantage as he tackled the one with the knife away from Ben. The guy struggled a lot, and Richie wasn't entirely sure he could win this fight. The guy was clearly bigger than him and looked like he had quite a bit of muscle. The only reason Richie didn't stop fighting to get the knife away is that he knew if he did, then Ben would get hurt.

It was oddly quiet, and it wasn't until Richie noticed the guy's mouth moving and the veins sticking out on his face that he realized the guy was yelling at him. A part of Richie wanted to curl up then and there, bury his head in his knees, and cry as it hit him that he didn't hear anything any of them were saying this entire time.

_ Let's play a game, Richie! _

Shuddering, desperate to grab Ben and Bev and get the hell away from there, Richie leaned back as much as he could without allowing the guy to dislodge him. He used all of his weight to his advantage as he swung his elbow downright against the guy's temple. 

Richie hit him one, two, three more times before the guy finally stopped moving.

He wasn't sure if the guy was dead or just unconscious, and Richie felt vaguely sick when he thought about it and concluded that he wouldn't care if the guy did die.

Richie turned back to where the others were, only just barely managing to fling himself to the side and out of the way as one of the guys' friends tried to tackle him. He stumbled as all the sound came rushing back to him. Now he could hear the guys' friend's cursing at him, threatening him, and he could vaguely hear Bev screaming and Ben yelling- not quite to the point where it could be described as full-on screaming, but getting close to it. Richie scrambled over to the large rocks that laid forgotten on the ground. He managed to grab one just as someone wrapped their hand around his ankle and pulled him back. Twisting around, Richie swung the rock towards the other guy's head. Grimacing as he immediately lost consciousness, falling on top of Richie. Kicking the guy off of him, Richie's head snapped up, searching for Bev and Ben. He only let out a relieved, startled laugh as he saw the both of them hurling rocks at the remaining two guys who showed up.

Richie quickly got up to his feet and hurried over to his friends. Just as he was about to search for more rocks, the two guys took off running, yelling threats back at them.

"What the fuck was that?!"

Richie winced, leaning away from Bev to rub his ear, "What? Jesus, did you have to scream so fucking loud?"

Everything was coming at him all at once, and it was still too much for him at the moment. Bev screaming only made it worse. He could hear them, he knew he could, but their words didn't register. Ben and Bev both seemed to be yelling. Richie wasn't sure if it was at him, those guys, or each other. He felt the heat of summer beating down on him, he heard them talking though it was all jumbled, and he knew where he was.

The problem was that he couldn't concentrate. He couldn't focus on anything, and it was making him angry. Not at Ben or Bev, but at himself.

"Richie?"

Startled by the touch on his shoulder, Richie flung himself away before realizing it was just Bev.

Ben stared at him with wide eyes, "Richie? Richie, are you okay?"

Swallowing past the lump in his throat, Richie grinned, "Of course! Sorry, I-I've had a bit of a headache for a while now, and listening to those assholes made it worse."

Bev glanced at Ben before slowly reaching out and gently taking Richie's hands in her own, "How about… how about we put off going to the Quarry today?"

"Aren't your guys' friends waiting for you?"

"Well yeah-"

"Then let's go meet up with them," Richie interrupted, "I'm fine, promise. Are you guys all right?"

Bev nodded at him while Ben grimaced.

"I think I got hit in the head by one of those rocks."

Richie stood off to the side, waiting patiently while Bev checked out the lump on Ben's head. There wasn't any blood and according to Bev, his pupils didn't seem to be glazed over or anything. Richie didn't point out how that wasn't exactly the best way to check for a concussion but as long as Ben didn't start to slur his words, vomit, or lose consciousness then he supposes he was fine. He just wanted them to hurry up and get going already, something about staying so close to that bridge had him feeling uneasy.

* * *

"Oh!" 

Richie blinked, staring past all the others as his eyes immediately landed on Bill. Bill, who took one look before full-on beaming at him. Thank God. Richie had asked his dad to drive past Bill's house before taking him to the library, but he refused, claiming that it was too big of a detour when he had to get to work. Richie didn't realize how badly not checking on Georgie and Bill has been bothering him until just now.

"You okay?"

Glancing at Bev, Richie nodded before gesturing towards Bill, "Yeah, sorry, just a bit surprised to see him here."

"You guys know each other?"

Richie opened his mouth to explain but hesitated before any words left him. How is he supposed to explain to them that he did know Bill, but only because he had rammed his bike into his little brother, and then took off after dropping them off at their house? All the others except Bill, Ben, and Bev were already staring at him oddly. He didn't want to make his first impression even worse than it was.

"Y-Yeah, we met y-y-yesterday."

Richie noticed how the only ones that seemed surprised by this information were Ben and Bev and felt what little hope he had on getting the others to like him starting to fade away. He guessed Bill must have told the others about what happened yesterday before they got to the Quarry. Was that why everyone was staring at him like that? Richie found himself flushing from the attention, wanting nothing more than to be anywhere else but there.

"What took you guys so long?" One of the shorter kids, the one with the fanny pack, broke the awkward silence.

"Um," Richie cleared his throat as one hand came up to straighten his glasses, "We ran into someone Bev called Bowers?"

The kid looked at him, and Richie wasn't sure why he seemed so shocked.

"What happened to your hands?!"

"What?" Richie held his hands out in front of him and looked them over, surprised to see a few of his knuckles were split open and bleeding a little bit.

He didn't say a word as the kid rushed over to him, too startled to protest as he began fumbling as he hurried to pull a few antibacterial wipes and Band-Aids out of his fanny pack, before demanding that Richie hold his hands out and keep them still while he started cleaning them up. Embarrassed, Richie looked toward Ben for help, but Ben was too busy staring at Richie's hands to notice him trying to signal him for help with his eyes.

"Eddie, I think Richie wants to do that himself?"

Richie smiled at the dark-skinned teen thankfully before looking down at Eddie, who was frowning at him.

"How do I know you'll do it, right?"

"Come-on, Eds," Richie said, "It's just a few scrapes. That's all, I probably don't even need those Band-Aids."

"Don't call me Eds!"

Generally, if someone hated a nickname, he gave them Richie to apologize, but he didn't think Eddie was actually minded if the almost pleased expression on his face was any indication. 

Bev snickered at them, "You might as well just let him finish cleaning them up."

"R-Right, s-so you guys ran into B-Bowers?"

"And his idiot friends too," Bev scowled, "They were waiting on the kissing bridge when we were walking past and started throwing rocks at us."

"Ben got hit in the head." Richie piped up, "Bev checked him out though and says it doesn't seem like he has a concussion."

Eddie twisted around to stare at Ben even as he kept blotting the antibacterial wipe against the cut on Richie's knuckles, "Sit down! I'll check and make sure you don't have a concussion as soon as I'm done here."

Ben did as he was told before picking up where Bev left off, "They ran down and caught up to us before we could get here to you guys. One of them grabbed Bev, and the other’s er… grabbed me."

One of the other kids, the one with curly blondish hair, gestured at Richie, "What does that have to do with his knuckles?"

Bev leveled a stern glare at Richie, "That's because he didn't listen to me and instead tackled Bowers of all people, and he started fighting him!"

All of them, Ben and Bev included, all started yelling at him then. Each of them telling him how stupid it was to try and fight, basically telling him over and over again how he could have gotten hurt, how he should have just run away, etc. Richie just stood there and let the noise wash over him, walking the rest of the way to the Quarry helped calm him down. Hearing the others yelling didn't bother him as much as it would have earlier. In fact, at the moment, it didn't bother him at all. Unable to help himself, Richie laughed.

"Why's this so funny, asshole?!"

Richie grinned at Eddie, "Sorry, sorry. I-It's not funny."

After many grumbling and half-hearted lectures, the others all spread out, taking off bags and rifling through them, Ben pulled Richie off to the side. Richie was about to make a joke but stopped at the rugged look Ben was giving him.

"Richie, promise me you won't do something like that again."

Richie blinked, "Why?"

"It's just… it's dangerous to go against Bowers like that." Ben said quietly.

Richie swallowed. He wasn't sure how to respond. He wasn't sure because he still didn't know what came over him back there. He usually knew not to get involved in any fights. When word about this gets back to his parents, they're going to be so pissed off at him. The whole reason why they ended up moving to Derry in the first place was because of how often he was getting into fights back in California. While he really wasn't looking forward to the lectures he just knew would be waiting for him, he didn't regret it. He didn't regret it, and if push came to shove, he would gladly fight Bowers again. Something about seeing the way Bev and Ben were being treated bothered him in a way that bullies never got at him before. At that moment, all he could think about was how he had to keep them safe. He felt an almost animalistic urge to protect them come over him, and he let that dictate his actions.

"Richie?"

Richie grinned crookedly, "Sorry, Haystack, but that's one promise I'm not going to be able to make you."

"But-!"

"No, if, and, or buts!" Richie gently elbowed Ben in the side, "listen, I'm sorry if I freaked you out. I'm still not going to make that promise, though. If I see one of my friends in danger of fucking course, I'm going to step in."

"But… I don't want you to get hurt."

"Same goes for me, I didn't want to see you or Bev there get hurt."

Once the constipated look on Ben's face faded away, Richie spun on his heel and dragged him back over to where the others were waiting.

* * *

Just as Richie was about to ask Eddie if he had any sunscreen in that fanny pack of his, Ben spoke up, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled over them.

"Hey, Richie, w-want to come hang out with us on Saturday?"

"Saturday?"

"Yeah," Ben grinned, "Bill invited us all over to play video games and watch a few movies."

Richie looked at Bill, "Sounds like fun, Hey Bill, is Georgie going to be there?"

"My p-parents are going out, I'm s-su-supposed to watch him."

"Okay, cool, but are you fine with me being there?"

Bill blinked, "Y-Yeah? Why w-wouldn't I want you there?"

Richie shifted, uncomfortable with the way the others were all watching Bill and him, "Well, Benny over there did invite me without asking you, and isn't Georgie scared of me?"

Bill reared back, "No! W-Why would Ge-Georgie be scared of you?"

"I sort of kidnapped him, remember?"

"No, you s-saved him," Bill frowned, "H-H said that you pulled him a-away from the clo-er, the d-drain."

Richie snorted humorlessly, "I rammed my bike into him and dragged him around for a few blocks before he suggested I take him home. If someone did that to me, I wouldn't want to see them."

"It's okay. I p-promise!" 

Richie slowly nodded, the sudden shift to the playful mood from earlier made him want to get up and walk away, but he had a feeling if he did that, then Bill would follow after him.

"Okay!" Bev clapped her hands together, the loud noise startling them all, "Enough of that, boys, how about we get some swimming in already?"

The others murmured their agreement. Richie looked away as they started pulling their clothes off, leaving them in just their undergarments. He couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed in this situation. It was clear that they did this often with how comfortable they all were with one another. This kind of thing was not something he's done before. He noticed that the blond one, with the curly hair, was the only one of the group not stripping or heading down to the water.

They sat together for a few minutes, neither talking, and Richie wanted nothing more than to leave this awkward atmosphere behind, but something about Stan being left alone bothered him.

Clearing his throat, Richie decided to try and break the silence.

“So… what’s your name?”

“What?”

“It’s just I know Ben and Bev. I learned Bill’s name yesterday and you guys called Eddie by his name in front of me… I just don’t know the rest of you.”

A pinched look was directed at him, “Oh… I’m Stan and all that’s left is Mike.”

Richie grinned, “Nice to meet you, Stan. You already know my name.”

The conversation died off, Stan sitting there quietly and Richie wasn’t sure what else to say. 

"A par-sorry, get together at Bill's house? Do you guys do that often, or is it just because I'm here," Richie blurted, wanting nothing more than for the awkward tension to leave.

"We do it almost every other day. Oh, and I won't be there," Stan murmured, looking almost surprised that Richie started talking to him, "I have to go to my bar-mitzvah."

"A bar-mitzvah? What's that?" Richie sat down on one of the towels spread out on the ground. Seeing Stan's questioning gaze, he explained, "I'm not up to swimming at the moment. Is it alright if I just sit here with you?"

"It's fine, and I don't know, I read some stuff from the Torah and make a speech, and then suddenly I become a man." 

"There are other ways to become a man, you know?" 

Stan rolled his eyes, shoving Richie, who couldn't help but laugh at the look on Stan's face.

"Sorry, sorry!"

They sat there in silence again for a few minutes. It wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. Richie was surprised to realize that he actually enjoyed the silence with Stan. He didn't feel the need to talk or crack jokes just to make some noise. Richie laid down and grimaced as sweat on his face immediately began to gather near the crease of his eyes.

"Hey, Stan, the man?"

Stan hummed, not glancing Richie's way once, but he knew he was listening.

"Is it alright if I stop by for your bar-mitzvah?" Richie shrugged self-consciously as Stan's head whipped around to stare at him, "It's just from how you made it sound, the others aren't going, are they?"

"Y-You can come."

And that was that. Neither brought it up again, but Richie spent the rest of his time at the Quarry silently thinking about what he should get Stan for a gift. He was almost positive that he would be allowed to bring a gift for him. He would have tried asking the others, but he didn't want to accidentally guilt-trip them about it if they weren't going. That and he wasn't sure if getting a gift for a Stan was appropriate. They literally just met. Would it be creepy if he brought a gift for him?

Maybe he could try looking it up when he gets home. His internet connection outside of the house was terrible no matter where he went.

It wasn't until hours later that they all reluctantly began to pack their things and leave the Quarry. He split off from the others quickly once he realized how late it was. He didn't want to get home after anyone else, then they might forget about making him a plate for dinner… again. It's why Richie began heading home as fast as he could. However, his mind was a jumbled mess, and something screaming at him to take the others up on their offer to hang out tomorrow. He's barely known any of them for more than a few hours, and yet he felt as though he knew them his whole life.

He already missed them, and that's what confuses him the most. How can you miss someone you've just met?

Hanging out with Ben and Bev, meeting the rest of the self-proclaimed Loser's club… today was one of the best days of his life. It was a bit shocking to see Bill there, but then again, this is a pretty small town, so it's not that surprising that they all knew each other. He was glad Bill didn't bring up what happened between Georgie and him yesterday or keep talking about that supposed clown.

The others said that they'd meet up at the Quarry again tomorrow morning, and then head out to Mike's farmhouse, maybe have a sleepover.

Richie tried not to let the others see how giddy the idea of a sleepover made him. That was definitely creepy, right? He didn't want to scare them off. He couldn't help but grow excited about it, he had one of two people back in California that he hung out with, but he couldn't say either of them were his friends. They mainly hung out with each other because they were the only ones around the same age.

He was excited because, for the first time in his life, he had friends.

He was so excited that he didn't realize that Mike had known his name before Richie even introduced himself to them, even hours later, once the high of meeting new friends died off.

**Author's Note:**

> Just an idea that hit me cause I wanted to write some Angst. This is not a time travel AU, it is a reincarnation into modern-times, we're just going to pretend the second movie never happened for the sake of this story. Remember, everyone, remembers except Richie, by everyone I mean everyone from The Loser's Club, not other characters taken from IT.  
> Slow to update mainly because I want to take my time and do this story justice, that and senior year of college just started and it's already kicking my ass.


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